Nio has entered a strategic partnership with a state-owned enterprise backed by Beijing’s Changping district government to construct 100 battery swap stations, the electric vehicle (EV) maker said on Wednesday.
Nio signed the agreement with Future Science City Group, which is majority-owned by the Changping District State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. The deal focuses on developing a green energy battery swap network, according to Nio co-founder and president Li Hong Qin.
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“Last week, we reached a strategic cooperation with CATL on battery swapping to build the world’s largest battery swap network. Today, we have the support of Future Science City,” Qin said in a statement on the Nio App.
The initiative follows a similar agreement in October 2024, when Nio partnered with Wuhan Shouyi Scientific Innovation Investment Group, a Hubei-based state-owned enterprise, to build 100 battery swap stations in the province.
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The company has been expanding its infrastructure through partnerships to reduce capital expenditure. In an interview on March 23, Nio founder and CEO William Li said, “Others will build the stations, and we will rent them for use and operation. We will move forward according to this model.”
Between 2019 and 2023, Future Science City Group received approximately RMB 50 billion ($6.9 billion) in government funding, according to a Fitch Ratings report, which affirmed the company’s BBB debt rating with a stable outlook. The firm plays a key role in infrastructure development for Beijing’s Changping district.
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Nio currently operates 3,196 battery swap stations and 25,780 chargers across China. The company’s Power Up Partners program, launched in August 2024, aims to expand charging and battery swap infrastructure while leveraging external funding.
Under its broader Power Up Counties initiative, Nio targets full coverage of all 2,300 county-level regions in China with battery swap stations by the end of 2025, while its charging network is expected to reach all counties by mid-2025.